Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step right up to the mike …
This is the way the world should be, according to the hypocrites and/or criminals who run the Sensible Sentencing Trust, ACT, some branches of the National Party and the ninnies and numbskulls who support them….
Most crime is caused by a very small group of people, spend a bit of money at the beginning so they stay on the correct path and the country will save millions in the long run.
Wow so if we locked up Trader John when he arrived back in New Zealand he would not have been able to sell our assets and similar crimes against the people of New Zealand
I see an issue with forcefully combining teens who are on welfare due to their parents having issues, and teens on welfare because they themselves became too problematic for their parents to deal with.
Lots of opportunities for sexual abuse and other forms of exploitation and not to mention that some of these teens just don’t cope well with authority.
And where is the research that shows teens living independently go “off the rails” to the extent that the state can justify such a scheme? Seems to me that this is another shift to profit driven welfare delivery.
Bennett in parliament was asked about why those with intractable conditions were being asked to provide a medical certificate every three months when the Doctor has indicated nothing was going to change for 2 or even five years. Bennett of course lied, and said that didn’t happen, and well she might since its not WINZ who picks up the doctors fees.
Its likely those on a benefit will get other illnesses and need to attend the Doctor, have prescription costs etc, and so the likelihood that such an illness happens just after they have been re-certified by their Doctor is very real. But that of course is inefficient, but its not inefficient for WINZ who unnecessarily force people to see there Doctor even if this in itself harmful and onerous.
Now I seem to remember there being a reciprocal respect clause in WINZ manuals, that if WINZ wants efficiency gains why would they impose inefficiency rules on others. Its hypocritical, its wrong, and Bennett is lying to parliament. Bennett has never believe a sickness (or ?congenitical? condition) can last more that a year, you’d think she would have a medical professional alongside of her when she gave such statements regarding health care.
Going to the Doctor can be hazardous to ones health! People who are ill go there! Its therefore something that should not be forced into unnecessarily. Forcing citizens to see Doctors, hasn’t happened since, what the last miltrary regime….?? Its just a bad precedent to set.
Every time the government feels under pressure or wants to hide something, Paula wheels out another reform that may or may not happen and it deflects the conversation.
Yeah. It was a problem with some site coming in and battering it.
I’ve been slowly working towards making it more resilient when I have time (still working on releases).
Since it went down last night anyway just before 10pm due to bots (looked like a new spambot network went online this week) and failed to survive the restart twice (and I finally have a Gold release done), I took the opportunity of it being offline to put the next phase in. Finished up uncompleted at about 6am, grabbed a few hours sleep and went to work to finish the Mac version of the client software…
Sometime this weekend or next week, I should have the last server reconfiguration to put into place. Then we will be ready for an election and capable of surviving the occasional bot storms (and do it on several hundred dollars per month).
“..ed:..we are really spoilt for choice..in bad breakfast television..
..and currently – the simpering of the compere on tv3 when interviewing key caused a serious case of gastric-reflux in me..so i am avoiding their offerings..
@ P Ure:
Morning Report on Natrad is a better option than both, though also pretty lame. The thing is though, that at least (unless you have a TV in the bathroom) you can take a dump/take the kids to the beach whilst listening and feel better about it.
Whereas the TV1 and TV3 equivalent audiences have a problem. (Whilst 3 for a half hour is OKish, there’s still the problems of having to clean up afterwards).
Silence, or noise free/technology free time though is not a bad option. I’m sure you could probably handle the loss of seeing those gorgeous celebs masquerading as journalists for a couple of hours.
Of course, I don’t have these problems. I’m a bit like those John Key, Simon Bridges, Paula Bennett, “The Standard trollers: BM, KK et al’ Natty types. I don’t shit, and I don’t sweat – plus I know what’s best for you.
I’m born to rule dontcha know. I studied Chris Finlayson, and I’m in awe! (AND I smell like a white rose – simply adorable)
Idiot/Savant over at NRT gave Chris Trotter a big fat raspberry yesterday over his take on Jerry Mateparae’s speech to the parliamentary press gallery. Well, lo, the Herald editorial writers today has done exactly what Trotter predicted – that is, used Mateparae’s speech as part of it’s pre-emptive campaign to delegitimise a Labour/Green coalition if National is the largest party after the next election.
Make no mistake. If given a chance, the political/business axis of the right will do everything in it’s power – up to and including trying to annull an election result with the flimiest of legal excuses – to prevent a government coming to power that threatens the neo-liberal consensus and capitalist power.
“The continuous circulation of water in the ocean, the atmosphere , and on the land is fundamental to the availability of water on the planet”.
– The Hydrologic Cycle and the Wisdom of God
“ From this I conclude that Humanistic Geography is neglected because it is too hard. Nevertheless, it should attract the tough-minded and the idealistic…”
@ Ad…..Yi-Fu Tuan …the American geographer?..i would say he would be a Greenie and a good friend of the environmentalists who wish to protect the rivers and aquifers
I remember both Whitlam AND Bainimarama both – in GREAT fucking detail. The former slightly better than the latter – in fact the latter is responsible for my various comments under a p p er sudo err psy, err alias.
I also remember my cousin ( a former spook’s warning)
Cherr bro, snot beart race or creed or changes of gubbamint amongst perceived colonial masters, or Muff McGillicuddy’s wank, wank wankering – who hardly ever heard of the Fiji-ease/EAR NUZULL trevull destnayshun before coming to pear – but are now absolute experts, pulling strings whilst their challengers wear manufektered buzzy suits looking like sommit that came outta a British-designed ark.
For FUCK’s bloody SAKE.
Fiji is probably the BIGGEST reason I (personally) have lost faith in the abilities of ear S oi S, en Goi.Soi.Ess.Boi.
Christ Almightly! No one – other than perhaps the of Michael Field (having to work under a corporate Fearfex) saw it all coming!!!! (He ekshly wrote about it in the early 00’s). And these (MFAT – snr megmint sperts) are the cnuts we’re now expected to entrust our ‘best interests’ and ‘welfare’ and ‘we-know-best’ hope to.
Fuck me with a feather duster.
Pardon me if I don’t have that much confdince.
FFS!
Smart sanctions that never ever were ….. (like political travel sanctions whilst failing to delve deeper – ANZ bank accounts filled with ill-gotten gains, Frankie boy’s history – known to NZDF/OZDF and reported to pollies, training ships where is ‘skills’ were learned;
embouldened (after BOTH Okker and NewZill changes) by a gubba gubbs desperately trying to rub together a couple of ideas to salvage a situation, PRIMARILY of their own fucking making.
Whilst Helen (and of course her advisors and spin doctors) might have been slightly naiive; theres’s a Key and a Muff that have ABSOLUTELY NO fucking ides (other than treats & trinkets-driven tuneties for nego-shay-shun)
” trying to annull an election result with the flimiest of legal excuses”
as far as i know theres no law requiring the biggest party to have first crack at, or demand the right to form a coalition – so that could be quite entertaining
It could be more about “manufacturing consent” regardless of electoral procedures, and GG Mateparae would be well used to both taking orders and doing the ruling class bidding.
this great danish tv series shows how mmp is supposed to work, & its very good drama too. many similar parallels to nz govt too. & also the right are wrong, if they think the biggest party ‘deserves’ to form govt, in borgen the biggest party is the opposition!
Not our precious Hobbitses movies? Yess… cuts them too!
The film/TV/commercial/animation industry in workers organisational terms is basically more of a rabble now than ever before with the exception of Northern Actors and some principled individuals. Tech guilds and all the rest mean little in what has been legislated into an official dependent contracting industry.
Some otherwise sensible people I know that support all sorts of Green and left causes have serious problems viewing their own film industry with some perspective, it is every dog for its self. This is the legacy of the Hobbit Enabling Act. And now the government that removed workers rights to organise won’t assist with macro settings that it could try. If anyone in the industry (apart from John Barnett of course) votes National next time they have rocks in their heads.
When you compare the two its quite clear from his responses that the hobbit deal was ONLY about doing something for warners. If it wasnt about that, and at the time joyce really did see it as being about helping the industry then he would have a better line than a flat out reversal this time, on the same issue wouldnt he
Im talking about how his actions and words on these two situations expose his actual motivation – not whether the film industry should get rebates or subsidies or whatever
” Hudes is trying very hard to expose the corrupt financial system that the global elite are using to control the wealth of the world.”
“A former insider at the World Bank, ex-Senior Counsel Karen Hudes, says the global financial system is dominated by a small group of corrupt, power-hungry figures centered around the privately owned U.S. Federal Reserve. The network has seized control of the media to cover up its crimes, too, she explained. In an interview with The New American, Hudes said that when she tried to blow the whistle on multiple problems at the World Bank, she was fired for her efforts. Now, along with a network of fellow whistleblowers, Hudes is determined to expose and end the corruption. And she is confident of success.
Citing an explosive 2011 Swiss study published in the PLOS ONE journal on the “network of global corporate control,” Hudes pointed out that a small group of entities — mostly financial institutions and especially central banks — exert a massive amount of influence over the international economy from behind the scenes. “What is really going on is that the world’s resources are being dominated by this group,” she explained, adding that the “corrupt power grabbers” have managed to dominate the media as well. “They’re being allowed to do it.”
Relevant to all of our interests, don’t you think?
So, the super-entity may not result from conspiracy. The real question, says the Zurich team, is whether it can exert concerted political power. Perhaps there is too many to sustain collusion. More likely they will compete in the market but act together on common interests. Resisting changes to the network structure may be one such common interest.
Remember the networks of individuals Bruce Jesson put together in “Only Their Purpose is Mad” and works prior to that? Well it’s also true on a global scale. It’s not as intentional as a hive-mind, but it’s still conscious and reflextive like an organism.
Just reminds me to get rid of the mortgage so fast.
I reread the article again. There are so many things wrong with what he has written it is hard to know where to start. I did make a rather restrained comment, will see if he replies.
You would say that would’nt you Weka. To Trotter charge ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”, how do you plead?
Ennui, WJ and JT’s actions were out there in public for all to see. They harassed (2 onto one) and victim blamed a woman telling her story. JT and WJ had the power in that situation. To not act pretty quickly against them would send a message in support of victim blaming, and silencing of victims.
JT especially is a serial offender when it comes to misogyny. How much more are people supposed to put up with?
If it had been Laws I do wonder if they would have stood him down.
However, standing up to their behaviour has sent a strong message. One question is whether the result will be to send the rape culture back under cover as it was before the roastbusters story or if society will front up to change. Sadly, not led by the Government in this regard.
“If it had been Laws I do wonder if they would have stood him down.”
Yes, but that’s about Mediaworks not the left blogosphere. Here is what I commented on Bowalley Rd, the last bit was my response to Trotter’s ideas about racism.
Chris, I take it from your use of quotation marks that you don’t think Tamihere and Jackson were misogynistic in that interview? Fortunately many people disagree with you, and they used their freedom of expression in, well, expressing that. I think the left blogosphere’s responses were perfectly appropriate: they saw behaviour that was unacceptable and they stepped up and did something. Kind of ironic to have you now arguing that was wrong, given the context of the rape club.
Because there can be little doubt that the decision by so many businesses to withdraw their advertising from Radio Live was prompted by the implicit threat of a consumer boycott of their products if they didn’t. Bluntly, the proposition put to Radio Live amounted to: “Take these guys off the air, or, first off, we’ll hurt your advertisers; and then we’ll hurt you.”
Has it occured to you that as part of that decision they looked at what Tamihere and Jackson actually did and decided they didn’t want their businesses associated with that in any way? It was interesting to read the initial responses from companies that pulled their advertising, compared to Countdown, who initially said it was nothing to do with them. When you read the first lot of responses from companies, they read like the people who wrote them were literate about rape culture. These weren’t responses from people merely concerned about profit lines, they were also concerned about ethics.
As for the ‘this is really racism’ angle…
What did Willie and JT see when 3 News broke the Roastbusters story? Two young brown faces. What did they hear? Middle-class Pakeha liberals baying for their blood. To what did their first thoughts turn? Rape Culture or Lynch Law?
That might be worth looking at if it weren’t for the fact that Tamihere and Jackson are both well known for their misogynistic views and attitudes, and their support of rape culture. I’m also less inclined to take notice of your view on this, given your cultural background, than I am to listen to the voices of Mana Wahine, where Maori women have spoken out about their concern over what Tamihere and Jackson did. Did you do any research on what Maori women have said on this in the last week before you wrote your article?
Weka, Karol et al, you have answered my question admirably. QED.
Nothing pleases me less than the prospect of having the bloggers of the “Left” having any influence over long established principles.To quote a well known story, “A little more caution from you; that is no trinket you carry.”
Your principle appears to be that people are entitled to use hate speech. But what I suspect what you really mean is that people are entitled to support misogyny/rape culture but not other kinds of hatred.
If I’ve misunderstood, that’s up to you, because your comments aren’t particularly clear.
Weka, you have definitely misunderstood. Clarity comes from reading, listening, understanding, applying principles, engaging, understanding. And then formulating a response.
Trotters charge was ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”. I think the answer very self evident in the columns here over the last week. Conclusions are made quickly, charges laid, guilt assumed….an example is that you say to me Your principle appears to be that people are entitled to use hate speech. But what I suspect what you really mean is that people are entitled to support misogyny/rape culture but not other kinds of hatred. That is an example of a complete leap of faith, a non informed presumption, and to me quite wrong and slanderous. What right have you to tell me what I am thinking? It backs up Trotters contention on korero.
I have a very real fear that the ‘instincts” shown on this column will not lead to a positive result, so I blew the whistle. Rings of power should not be used, if the Left does not want to go down the same coercive authoritarian path of the Right they should not mirror their “instincts”.
Rings of power should not be used, if the Left does not want to go down the same coercive authoritarian path of the Right they should not mirror their “instincts”.
If it is for a good end, and we find that too many NZers are being regressive (whether they are male or female), why not identify them as part of the problem to be fixed, with firmer measures and sanctions if and when needed.
Particularly after the release of the Roy Morgan results, it can be safely concluded that a large segment of NZ men have a serious attitude problem. Let’s simply push through clear, solid measures which show that progressive attitude and languaging is the only correct and acceptable type to have in this country.
CV, you say, Let’s simply push through clear, solid measures which show that progressive attitude and languaging is the only correct and acceptable type to have in this country.. Let me paraphrase it…let us force people to accept our standards and language, as defined by us, other wise they are heretics….
“let us force people to accept our standards and language, as defined by us, other wise they are heretics….”
In your world there would still be slaves and women wouldn’t vote. We can leave things as they are and continue a rape-type culture. Too bad that 1-3 females will be sexually abused we can’t send any message to a large part of society that they are part of the problem. We’ll just wait for them to come to it in their own time… meanwhile, another hour another sexual abused citizen.
Ennui, you may very well be right, but I have no idea because instead of clarifying what you actually meant you’ve just given me a little lecture on something.
btw, if you reread what I wrote, I intentionally used the words ‘appear’ and ‘suspect’ which clearly indicate that I am expressing what I heard rather than defining what you think. That left an opening for you to correct or clarify. That you failed to do so is all down to you.
You come into a conversation about rape culture, and cherry pick out one sentence from a much longer piece by Trotter. Then you make vague accusations towards myself and others here, but you don’t actually tell us what YOU think. I know a set up when I see one, so either clarify what the fuck you are on abotu or stop wasting my time.
Weka, when I came into the conversation it was in response to you accusing Trotter making apologies for Tamihere and Jackson.
I read the article, was left unconvinced either way by Trotter, and probably more in line with yourself (which is why you leap of faith on what I was thinking was somewhat illustrative). The only part I agree with Trotter on precisely is his contention on the Lefts instincts. Hence my original question.
And that, is the crux of it. If your mind is subtle enough to understand, on that point bloggers of the Left confirm Trotters contention in bucket loads.
The implication is about means justifying ends: Trotters words condemn/threaten/punish are all coercive and authoritarian. If that is where you think the Left should be, all good. Count me out.
I will waste no more of my time on this, yours appears precious to you.
Still no idea what you are on about Ennui. If you look at every comment you have made in this sub-thread, there are examples of implication without saying what you actually mean.
I’m out of patience with this kind of communicating after vto ran us all round in circles yesterday. I don’t know you well enough to know why you communicate like this, but let me just say, if you do want to have a genuine conversation with me, assume I need things spelled out.
” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”
is complete bullshit. Numerous offers were made by people to appear on JT&W’s show. the offers were rejected or ignored. On the second day, after they had given a pro forma and weak apology, they decided the conversation was over and proceeded to hit the dump button on anyone who started to talk about it.
It was at that point the Tiso started emailing advertisers.
And aside from that, there have been dozens of posts all over the place from people talking about rape culture, and what it is. They have been happening for a long time, and you can read the comment threads to see how the conversations go.
And beyond even that, this is simply not a slide into totalitarianism as Trotter makes out. that’s just fucking laughable. especially coming from him. this is a guy who thinks that the Crown should have used even more extra-legal means to secure convictions in the alleged terrorism case a few years back. A civil libertarian, he just plain isn’t. So for him to climb up on his high horse and start issuing grave warnings, well. It all just smacks of being part of his long running and well documented animosity to those younger, and more liberal, than he.
weka, I commend you on expressing well, why Trotter has got it so wrong, here and on Bowalley Road. Trotter not listening, though…
… because it’s all about JT & WJ. And when are JT, WJ, and Trotter going to step up for women on low incomes, beneficiaries, low paid, etc, especially Maori and Pasifika women? These women are multiply oppressed by an economic system geared for the privileged, plus (as with women across all demographics) by misogyny, domestic violence, rape culture etc.
But for Trotter, it’s just about working class men.
Thanks karol. I may be banging my head on a brick wall there. Just waiting to see if he can stretch his mind a bit and apply his political analysis to gender. Kind of weird he’s brought ethnicity and completely ignored the reality for Maori women.
Are you white, were you born before the First World War, do you wear a cheesecutter and braces, do you have a moustache? If you can answer “yes” to all of these, then Chris Trotter will passionately defend you. If not, then you’re a distraction.
3. Trotter is disingenuous to to claim the campaign to take them off air is unprecedented. Consumer boycotts for political and social purposes have a long history
You would say that would’nt you Weka. To Trotter charge ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”, how do you plead?
Firstly, I think the whole ‘on trial’ thing is both spurious, and, in this context, highly offensive to all the women who have been raped who have been denied justice legally. Think about that for a moment.
Secondly, if it were two white men preaching race hatred on radio and harassing a Maori woman who had phoned in, would the left still be expected to engage meaningfully with the two white men, and allow them to have their say? What about if it were two men who were harassing a disabled person about their disability? Should the left korero with them on an even footing, allow them to defend their actions?
Honestly, on what planet would you want to give more air to misogyny? The only rationale I can see is if you think that Tamihere and Jackson’s actions weren’t that bad.
Trotter is disingenuous when he says that Tamihere and Jackson were silenced by the left blogosphere. They were silenced by their employers for bringing their employers’ business into disrepute. And good on Mediaworks for doing that.
i really only have a few points to raise on the trotter article
1) theres more than one way to say something – if experienced people like JT and WJ cant figure out a way to say what they want that wont land them in hot water then thats not anyones fault but theirs
2) no-ones free speech has been reduced, has there been anyone kicking in their doors and hauling them off to speech court?- No. The people who pay them either directly or indirectly have decided to take quite normal measures to express the fact that they didnt really like it – either personally or because of the general reaction. Its a money thing, not a rights thing
3) free speech isnt a one way street – say whatever you want – but dont then demand no one challenges you or that no ones tries to win others to their side of the argument
4) theres a vast difference between pub talk and paid talk – if people really cant see that then theres really not much hope for this thing we call free speech.
I say all sorts of things that probably wouldnt go down that well in a client meeting – but when im at work im an agent of my employer. If i did say what im thinking sometimes, there would be consequences. But privately – well thats a different story
the difference being that Willie and JT are paid to talk the way they do. As are Paul Henry, the crews on The Rock etc. They aint being paid to read the news on the BBC World Service.
No, they are only allowed to read the weather….but there’s some RNZ woman who are allowed to contribute. I can’t stand the commercial radio stations these dayz…
Do as many women get an equivalent platform to express their views?
It’s commercial radio. You want on you have to get ratings and you have to get advertisers. Starting with an outspoken profile helps. And the current style seems to be to stir the pot with trash talk and anti-PC drivel.
Whereas you post with an attempted air of non-judgment yet judgment oozes from every word. Your and Trotter’s liberal use of “left” this and “left” that is misplaced and unnecessary.
“condemn, threaten, punish and shut down” could also be examine, question, challenge and seek change through action.
It’s not about JT and WJ and their rehabilitation or realisation it’s about sending message to women and men alike that behaviours need to change and now.
I agree that someone like Paul Henry was far from suspended but supported and praised across the nation. Michael Laws?
I also agree that there may be some racism in this decision, both from the station and the advertisers. easier to let them go because the board and advertisers dont support their politics anyway… whereas to lose a Henry or Laws was to lose free advertising/mouthpiece for their ideological preferences?
Freedom of speech, like any freedom, ought to be exercised prudently, especially by those with power (like radio hosts). It is not a license to inflict harm out of ignorance or ingrained social/cultural ignorance. This is not the first time JT has been misogynistic or homophobic.
he got to speak far more freely on this topic than most victims ever will, and it had consequences. IF he had been a devil’s advocate it might have been different, but they weren’t, they were allowing perpetrators and enablers and the woefully ignorant to nod in agreement and further ingrain their appalling attitudes toward women and abuse.
Me too. The kea is/was unique in its intelligence character and charm.
Keas have been seen pecking at downed high country sheep so:
“They keas must have killed the sheep. We farmers must kill the keas. Bang!”
I wonder why the latest Roy Morgan poll is not trumpeted on high here like the last few Roy Morgan polls. Perhaps because it shows that National have again risen and now rank more then Labour+ Greens. The Roy Morgan poll is the one most beloved by the Left. Sadly The Cunliffe’s honeymoon is already over.
Lolz, i am sure Fisani and the rest of the Tory cheerleaders are overjoyed with the result of the latest Roy Morgan,
After weeks of dissing Winston Peters, NZFirst and talking up Colin Craig’s Conservatives and burning up the goodwill and favors from editors and news programers across the media spectrum Slippery the Prime Minister has to sit there and watch as National rips all the support from Craig’s pot-pourri of assorted fruits and nuts,
Craig contrary to His assertion appears to be only capable of soaking up the remnants of the ACT Party and has failed abysmally to make a dent in the support of NZFirst who in the past few months have taken a definite step to the left into State provision and ownership of a number of areas that have been taboo during the Neo-Liberal reign,
This only leaves one question, can the opposition parties form a stable Government together, my opinion is Yes, on the major issues surrounding economy and the direction and actions of the Government within that economy there is among the three, Labour,Green,NZFirst more agreement than there is disagreement…
Basically, lab have gotten over the leadership change bump and will now probably get get back to solid incremental improvement in the next couple of cycles. The representation issue will fizzle away (except on the sewer), and the government will still be demonstrating incompetence (or, in a new twist, actively claiming incometence like Colman did).
Anne
I would say it was an ironic comment on the regular meme and theme that is heard about Auckland. Don’t let’s start over-sensitising to ordinary words – it leads to anaphylactic outcomes disastrous to discussion. I admit I get fired up about mother-fuc.er, two fairly ordinary words, but I find the combination unacceptable.
Racist? In that Pakeha ignorant of what racism really is kind of way, yes. As someone says in the article, coming from someone with no ties to the Polynesian community it’s still about perceptions of Polynesians as ‘other’. I thought the Herald did relatively well in finding a good person to comment.
Grey, it’s not about the word. It’s about who used it and the context it was used in.
weka
Don’t be always looking for something to grizzle about. Why is there on every site one, apparently female, waiting to jump up, censor things and take others to task?
Perhaps you might have noticed how often there is a one-person ambush waiting to tell everyone what to do, how its done correctly, and passing critical comments of others opinions. I do some of it myself but try to limit it. It is one of those aids in life that, overdone, becomes stifling.
If it was South Africans mentioned, thinking that there are a lot on the North Shore, or whatever, it would be acknowledging a fact.
Good news for young women in 16 and 17 year group. I think it may be only those with babies. Those who have had to live separately from their family will now get the security and support that a good family should provide.
They are to have shared housing provided with up to three of them living together. Older people, or slightly older young ones will be nearby and mentor them and their money will be channelled into providing the necessities first and then presumably an amount for discretionary spending. They are going to be supported, helped and be in training that will prepare them for their future employment and managing their own lives. If done sympathetically and a friendly organised way it will be great.
This should be done widely, meeting whatever need there is, not just a pilot scheme to wave in front of the voters in election year as an example of the wonderful capacity building that this government is doing. But don’t know what will happen when the women turn 18, hope it won’t be ‘throw them in the pool to see if they can swim’ time. And what about working with boys, the young men who apparently do not mature until they are 25, and what a tortuous path they may follow in their younger years?
One swallow does not win an election. But some would swallow it. Let’s have more and show up Labour, try and fight them and the Greens, with the observable facts and evidence on the ground of NACTs good ‘social development’.
The irony there is that if this were being offered under a L/G govt, it might actually work. Under a NACT govt, it’s likely to be hit and miss at best, and that will largely depend on the people in the agencies involved. Some will do good, some will do bad.
I saw something yesterday that said that 16 and 17 yr olds are no longer allowed welfare payments directly. The payments instead go through an agency. Wouldn’t it be better to have a system whereby if the young person can demonstrate they are capable of managing their finances they are allowed to do so? Isn’t it both patronising and disabling to treat all young people as the same?
“and then presumably an amount for discretionary spending.”
What are you basing that one?
“I think it may be only those with babies.”
I didn’t pick that up, I thought it was all 16/17 yr olds who had had to leave home.
Yes weka, I am not sure about the exact details. But because of the vulnerability of that age and the fact they have already got to the baby stage, it doesn’t hurt to treat them all with over care and some rules. And doing their own household budgeting and so on, they would get advice on good diets and what different foods are good for for health and gardening of simple vegetables etc.
The group should be led to the self-managing state. Planning their budgets which they check out together to see how well they are managing etc. And they definitely should not have all their money taken by the agency. But it’s not meant to be just a short-term course where these young ones are left on their own after just learning stuff. Capacity building I said and that’s what I understood is the intention.
You have a lot more faith in the system than I do, and 100% more faith in the intentions of NACT. Mostly I see them as being controlling and manipulative. If the scheme were done with aroha I would agree with some of what you say. But I’ve never seen aroha coming from the Minister, and I know from experience that the state is mostly operating under a punitive welfare regime during NACT govts. I guess the damage they do with this one will just be added to the pile.
My mother-in-law had her first child at 17. Apparently not a completely unheard of occurrence in those days – 70 years approx.
Perhaps instead of talking (endlessly) about the vulnerability and lack of discipline of contemporary women in the same situation, we look for the capability and success of those that manage – and manage well.
They will have more insight into how to achieve success than someone with a completely different idea of “the right time to have a baby” and “poor offspring”. I am sometimes appalled by the lack of insight of those who are trained to help, and like weka think that usually the “help” that is offered by programmes like these from the National party are often applied in conjunction with a big stick.
If this was voluntary, done properly, with good support and access to ongoing education / training you might have a starter.
But given that this is the party that has consistantly cut access to education and training it doesnt seem likely.
Looks more like a way to hand off money to unaccountable private sector organisations.
Also, as can be seen in the legislation they have passed over the last 5 years, they don’t appear to understand the concepts of good governance, accountability or any sort of fiscal competance.
Expect opportunities for rorts, abuse of the system, and potentially abuse of the young women.
“Currently, there are around eight potential sites around the country including in Christchurch, Tokoroa, Whakatane, Auckland, Hamilton and Invercargill.”
At least it’ll only be a pilot. If Labour / Greens get in next year, it might provide a starting point for a decent program.
I believe that there’s a difference between providing support and ensuring that they get it and standing over their shoulder. This new policy from National is obviously the latter.
nz has no legal answer to ponzi schemes. we open ourselves up to the diseases of the world of all types yet don’t take sensible precautionary protective measures or have remedial procedures.
(I suggest while you read listen to youtube of Taco singing Putting on the Ritz, very appropriate.)
And clever experienced keys has been in politics for almost a decade, and came with full knowledge of the dangers to a country and its investors of shonkey schemes. He knew. and he didn’t pass on his knowledge for the benefit of the country. Birds of a feather fly together, the old saying. So he has a bunch that like his style, his money, his panache, his casual cheeriness, his concise answers to difficult or ethical problems with a falling emphasis in his voice.)
Now follow up Taco with Robin Williams on being an alcoholic.
New Bacon for an egg?
Another acquisition by some super-rich prick who probably doesn’t really like the work all that much, just wants to impress visitors to the mansion.
Can only hope it gets donated to a public collection when the golden one passes on..
Die on the job? You can’t picket parliament, corporate headquarters, for a fair redundancy. So Mr Key its not the same.
Are we really that backwards that secured investors get paid out before the bereaved (who get nothing)? That a government that removed protection is not liable for the results?
That owners of undeveloped land get 50% in ChCh from the govt! Yet miners get nowt?
Okay, get the argument that the miners were not unionized, and were paid more so they could take out life insurance etc. But there was one kid who died, on his first day down the mine, who would likely have not gotten any insurance as he might not have taken to the job.
Why can’t boring parrot Chris come up with some original drivel instead this rote-learned crap? No wonder research shows that right wingers have lower IQs when this is the best they can manage: make up a lie, then repeat it to one another like a cultist mantra.
Why don’t they just become Scientologists? At least they’d have more exciting drivel.
It wasn’t the teachers plotting against the children, Thetan Chris, it was Xenu.
The misinformation given is that somehow the PPTA instructs its members to do this or that. The PPTA is run by teachers for teachers. A decision to boycott will be a local majority decision not an instruction from on high.
Is a boycott a good idea? It might just mean that if you want to go it alone, then do so without our help or support. That would be unsurprising wouldn’t it?
Society values money more than sexual assault victims??
“The man behind what is thought to be New Zealand’s largest Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to 10 years and 10 months in prison.”
“Daniel Taylor, 34, a former foster parent for Child Youth and Family, was sentenced to five years and seven months behind bars when he appeared for sentencing in the High Court at Whangarei this morning.
Justice Peter Woodhouse ordered that Taylor serve at least two years and 10 months before he was eligible for parole and expressed doubt at the convicted paedophile’s remorse after it emerged he had penned a single line apology letter to his victims – signed “regards, Daniel Taylor”.”
Yep, it’s a great focus. Better than focusing on, say, funding rape prevention programmes in all high schools. Better to spend time and money chasing the fines…
“You’ve got about four months from the time you’ve been stopped and given a ticket to pay. That’s not bad, and that’s interest-free credit.” says Chester beater Borrows
Don’t know how he can call it “interest-free credit” when the government don’t borrow money to cover it….do they?
He said the measure would apply only to people who ignored repeated 28-day deadlines for fines.
“You’ve got about four months from the time you’ve been stopped and given a ticket to pay. That’s not bad, and that’s interest-free credit.”
/facepalm
Last time I got stopped for speeding I got a fine that I had to pay, not an interest free loan that I could spend anyway I liked.
And, yes, I do think it’s a good move. Loss of license, loss of car (while keeping the debt of course) should make people think. I would be interested in the demographics of it as well.
“A report by the army’s social policy analyst Alan Johnson shows rents for the cheapest quarter of rented homes in the former Auckland City have risen faster than average since 2008 – by 21.6 per cent for three bedrooms and 25 per cent for two bedrooms in the lower quartile, in a period when median rents across Auckland rose by 17 per cent and consumer prices by only 12.5 per cent.
But benefits have been adjusted only in line with consumer prices, and the maximum rates of accommodation supplement have not changed since 2005.
The result is that five out of six low-income groups examined in the report are now worse off in real terms than they were five years ago by amounts ranging from $1.33 a week for a single sickness beneficiary renting a one-bedroom flat to $33.64 a week for an unemployed couple with three children renting a three-bedroom house, both at lower-quartile rents.”
The site was getting pretty damn slow because I managed to comment out the provision of swap space in fstab when I was fiddling last night. It was getting pretty memory constrained..
Just turned the swap on and cleared the outstanding backlog.
For the service provider to comply with the proposed rules it must know how each and every user of its system accessed the allegedly copyright material. One way to ensure this capability is to prevent the use of proxy surfing. I don’t know how they would do it, though.
I was looking for the santa fe institute and got santa fe news, usa instead.
This was one of their articles. Sounds pretty jaw dropping. Like something from bootleg liquor days.
Boston crime boss Whitey Bulger sentenced to life
BOSTON — Former Boston crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger was sentenced Thursday to life in prison for his murderous reign in the 1970s and ’80s, bringing to a close a case that exposed FBI corruption so deep that many people across the city thought he would never be brought to justice. http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/
As someone actually living in Tokyo, I sometimes find myself offside with people more alarmed about the Fukushima situation. I thought this was a timely update about what is currently going on, since Bill posted about this a couple of weeks ago (as I understand it the commencement of the fuel removal operation was delayed for more testing to occur).
Anyway, the Japan Times is a pretty good source of thoroughly-researched news and is frequently critical of the Japanese government and TEPCO on a number of issues, so hopefully the article is informative. Also, the diagram is kinda neat.
Seymour describes sushi as too woke for school meals. There are no fish sushi meals recommended by the School Lunches programme. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Government will swap out hot meals for packaged sandwiches to save $107 million on school lunches for poor kids. MSD has pulled ...
I don't mind stealin' bread from the mouths of decadenceBut I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled, yeahBut it's on the table, the fire's cookin'And they're farmin' babies, while slaves are workin'The blood is on the table and the mouths are chokin'But I'm goin' hungry, yeahSome ...
The Ardern Government’s chickens came home to roost yesterday with the news that the country is short of natural gas. In 2018, Labour banned offshore petroleum exploration, and industry executives say that the attendant loss of confidence by the industry impacted overall investment in onshore gas fields. Energy Resources Minister ...
Hi,If you’ve been digging through the newly launched Webworm store (orders are being dispatched worldwide as I type!) you’ll have noticed the best model we had was Calvin.This is Calvin.Calvin.Calvin is 7, and is the son of my producer over on Flightless Bird, Rob — aka “Wobby Wob”. Rob also ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
Photo by Jari Hytönen on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Williams Veazey, ARC DECRA Research Fellow, University of Sydney DavideAngelini/Shutterstock In the 2007 film The Bucket List Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman play two main characters who respond to their terminal cancer diagnoses by rejecting experimental treatment. Instead, they go ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mohan Singh, Professor of Agri-Food Biotechnology, School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences at the University of Melbourne., The University of Melbourne Tanja Esser/Shutterstock Australia’s vital agriculture sector will be hit hard by steadily rising global temperatures. Our climate is already ...
The Acumen Edelman Trust barometer reported that New Zealand’s political trust score now sits below the global average, a topic explored in a recent discussion paper by Maxim Institute. ...
Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director Russel Norman says, "The Fast-Track Bill is the most damaging piece of environmental legislation any Government has introduced in living memory. People are angry, and it’s time to march." ...
The school lunches programme has been retained – and will be extended to some preschoolers. So how is it going to cost $107 million less? To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. The minister with many hats David Seymour wears a number of hats, but this week ...
“Show us the bird,” I found myself muttering at times while reading Hard by the Cloud House by Peter Walker, a deeply thoughtful, often hilarious, at times rambling – but somehow delightfully so – search for the story of a big bird. But not just any bird: the bird. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jack Marley, Environment + Energy Editor, UK edition DPVUE .images/Shutterstock Your home was probably designed for a climate that no longer exists. As long as humanity continues to burn fossil fuel, padding the heat-trapping blanket of gases in Earth’s atmosphere, the ...
A senior lawyer has filed a complaint about tikanga becoming a required law school module. Law lecturer Carwyn Jones explains what he’s getting wrong. “…the first law of Aotearoa, a law that served the needs of tangata whenua for a thousand years before the arrival of tauiwi.”– Ani Mikaere ...
In 2019, an Auckland woman woke up from surgery to find that she had undergone a treatment she didn’t consent to. She tells Alex Casey about her experience. From her very first period at the age of 14, Laura experienced “debilitating” levels of pain that forced her to withdraw from ...
In the gloom following director-general Al Morrison’s job cuts in 2013, the Department of Conservation restructured its operations arm. Eleven conservancy districts were whittled into six new “conservation delivery” regions, under which the Rēkohu/Wharekauri/Chatham Islands area, comprising 40 scattered islands more than 800km east of Christchurch, was tethered to the ...
One of th e country’s top litigation lawyers says New Zealand is seeing a lift in court action between companies. Chapman Tripp partner Justin Graham, who oversees a team of around 80 litigation specialists, says the courts are now so log-jammed that it’s taking over two years to get cases ...
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Comment: Concerns about the state of the economy are creeping up to the top of firms’ list of challenges. That’s evident in both surveys and the tone of our recent client discussions. Skimming the past few weeks of eco-news, it’s not hard to see why. – Retail card spending fell ...
Opinion: Could former co-leader James Shaw still make a difference to working with National? The post How the Greens could be contenders appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: What if we got rid of our existing drug laws and replaced them with a new law that legalised and carefully regulated all psychoactive substances, from cannabis to MDMA, methamphetamine and LSD to magic mushrooms? And which also included legal drugs such as alcohol and nicotine. “Wow,” you might ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government is talking up the crucial role of gas as a transition fuel “through to 2050 and beyond”. In a gas strategy to be released on Thursday, the government envisages the fuel’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Next week the government will again next try to get its legislation through to deal with non-citizens who won’t cooperate with efforts to deport them. The bill, which the opposition and crossbench refused to rush ...
A long-term project that will set out an alternative vision for Aotearoa that looks beyond the narrow confines of the policy straight jacket adopted by successive governments. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bree Hurst, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business and Law, QUT, Queensland University of Technology TK Kurikawa/Shutterstock A much-awaited report into Coles and Woolworths has found what many customers have long believed – Australia’s big supermarkets engage in price gouging. What started ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daniel Ghezelbash, Associate Professor and Deputy Director, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney The Albanese government wanted to avoid an inquiry into its migration amendment bill. The report, handed down yesterday by a senate committee that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joo-Cheong Tham, Professor, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne Lobbying is at the heart of government. Who has access to and influence over key government officials shapes the decisions governments make – and how they make them. The ability to influence ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Myfany Turpin, Associate Professor, Ethnomusicology, Linguistics and Ethnobiology, University of Sydney The act representing Australia at this year’s Eurovision contest has sadly not qualified for the grand final. Yet for Zaachariaha Fielding and Michael Ross, the duo that makes up Electric Fields, ...
In announcing changes to the school lunches programme, David Seymour said kids would no longer be served ‘woke’ foods. To clear up any confusion, The Spinoff has compiled a guide to the wokeness levels of some common food items. Apple = NOT WOKE Avocado = WOKE Avocado, smashed = EVEN ...
The Minister Responsible for GCSB and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security have been notified of this review, and have been provided a finalised Terms of Reference. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Minglu Chen, Senior Lecturer, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney Robert Way/Shutterstock As the past few years have illustrated so clearly, the Australia-China relationship is complicated. As such, it is crucial for Australians to develop a more nuanced understanding of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mariana Campbell, Research Lecturer, Conservation, Charles Darwin University Marilyn Connell Australian freshwater turtles are facing an alarming trend. Almost half of these species are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered. The Mary River turtle (Elusor macrurus) is one of Australia’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Debbie Passey, Digital Health Research Fellow, The University of Melbourne Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Josephine Barbaro, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, Psychologist, La Trobe University Unsplash We’ve come a long way in terms of understanding that everyone thinks, interacts and experiences the world differently. In the past, autistic people, people with attention deficit hyperactive disorder ...
PNG Post-Courier Papua New Guinea’s deputy opposition leader James Nomane has accused the government of “reckless economic management” that has forced devaluation to manage loan repayments in foreign currency and placate the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Prime Minister James Marape “must stop lying to the people of Papua New Guinea”, ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Bookseller Confessional, in which we get to know Aotearoa’s booksellers. This week: Jane Arthur, author of Brown Bird, and former bookseller at Good Books.The book I wish I’d writtenI have been working on not comparing myself to others. On accepting that what I can ...
The final decision on the Wellington District Plan makes it official: High-density housing is legal across most of Wellington. Housing minister Chris Bishop has announced his decision on the Wellington District Plan, approving a series of amendments to radically upzone most of Wellington, allowing tens of thousands of new townhouses ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to ...
RNZ News As Israel presses ahead with strikes in Rafah and seizing the Rafah crossing from Egypt, aid agencies are sounding the alarm of a “catastrophic humanitarian situation”. Rafah was “significant” because it was the only part in Gaza that had not been terribly damaged by the conflict, United Nations ...
With funding set to be scrapped for the Hamilton-Auckland commuter train, Te Huia enthusiast Georgie Dansey argues for it to be thrown a lifeline. It’s 5.45am and the chain of my crappy old bike falls off slugging up the one hill in Hamilton. I contemplate yeeting the bike into the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Cooke, Honorary Fellow, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland We feel ecological grief when we lose places, species or ecosystems we value and love. These losses are a growing threat to mental health and wellbeing globally. We all see ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shauna Brail, Associate Professor, Institute for Management & Innovation, University of Toronto A shift to hybrid and remote work continues to affect worker presence in Toronto’s downtown.(Shutterstock) Downtown Toronto, the core of Canada’s largest city, continues to reel from the lingering ...
Responding to an Auditor-General's report slamming failures in the administration of the 2023 General Election, Taxpayers’ Union Policy and Public Affairs Manager, James Ross, said: ...
Productivity apps now make up a big chunk of the software market. But do they work? And why do they all have AI integrations?Despite being firmly on the record as a physical planner fan, I sometimes dream of something better than my pretty diary and its scrawled, ugly, interior ...
The Taxpayers’ Union says the Beehive need to lead by example, following reports of more than $50,000 spent upgrading video conferencing equipment and furniture in the Prime Minister’s office. Taxpayers’ Union Campaign Manager, Connor Molloy, ...
An objective list of the 50 most powerful people in New Zealand, as judged by the Spinoff Editorial Board. It’s power list season, baby, and we want in on the action. Sure, there’s the rich list and the powerful “c-suite” list and the young people with power (hmmm) but here, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thalia Anthony, Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the names of deceased people, and describes ongoing colonial violence towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. First Nations people in Australia ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alex Simpson, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Macquarie University Netflix Baby Reindeer’s phenomenal success has much to do with its writer and lead, Richard Gadd, who plays Donny in a tender semi-autobiographical account of sexual abuse, harassment and stalking. Gadd’s story has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle KarolinaGrabowska/Pexels If you didn’t have food allergies as a child, is it possible to develop them as an adult? The short answer is yes. But the reasons why are much ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Moon, Professor of History, Auckland University of Technology Ans Westra, self-portrait, c. 1963. National Library ref AWM-0705-F They try but invariably fail – those writers who believe they are capable of encapsulating in prose or verse the essence of ...
Stewart Sowman-Lund looks at the growing concern around the world in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. What’s all this? When Covid-19 arrived on our shores in early 2020, some argued we were too slow, or crucially, ill-prepared for a pandemic. So ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Franco Montalto, Professor of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering and Director, Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Laboratory, Drexel University Water runs into a storm drain in a Los Angeles alley on Aug. 19, 2023, during Tropical Storm Hilary.Citizen of the Planet/Universal Images ...
The inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones has turned up a new witness who says he saw two teenagers and a small child in a high vis vest in the area where the boy’s body was found the day he died. Lachie’s body was discovered face up ...
How that “Three Strikes” law works in practice
This is the way the world should be, according to the hypocrites and/or criminals who run the Sensible Sentencing Trust, ACT, some branches of the National Party and the ninnies and numbskulls who support them….
http://normanfinkelstein.com/2013/what-life-is-like-if-you-make-one-wrong-move-but-dont-have-connections/
Nanny state at its finest:
Govt eyes live-in mentors to help welfare teens
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11157400
Even people on home dentention aren’t under such surveillance. Great hunting ground for perverts of all kinds.
Good Idea.
Most crime is caused by a very small group of people, spend a bit of money at the beginning so they stay on the correct path and the country will save millions in the long run.
Oh, so it will be a prison house for teens. Thanks for the heads up Bland Man.
Wow so if we locked up Trader John when he arrived back in New Zealand he would not have been able to sell our assets and similar crimes against the people of New Zealand
If only we had thought of it then…
I see an issue with forcefully combining teens who are on welfare due to their parents having issues, and teens on welfare because they themselves became too problematic for their parents to deal with.
Lots of opportunities for sexual abuse and other forms of exploitation and not to mention that some of these teens just don’t cope well with authority.
And where is the research that shows teens living independently go “off the rails” to the extent that the state can justify such a scheme? Seems to me that this is another shift to profit driven welfare delivery.
“another shift to profit driven welfare delivery.”
bingo – its got nothing to do with fixing anything except a private contractors balance sheet
Bennett in parliament was asked about why those with intractable conditions were being asked to provide a medical certificate every three months when the Doctor has indicated nothing was going to change for 2 or even five years. Bennett of course lied, and said that didn’t happen, and well she might since its not WINZ who picks up the doctors fees.
Its likely those on a benefit will get other illnesses and need to attend the Doctor, have prescription costs etc, and so the likelihood that such an illness happens just after they have been re-certified by their Doctor is very real. But that of course is inefficient, but its not inefficient for WINZ who unnecessarily force people to see there Doctor even if this in itself harmful and onerous.
Now I seem to remember there being a reciprocal respect clause in WINZ manuals, that if WINZ wants efficiency gains why would they impose inefficiency rules on others. Its hypocritical, its wrong, and Bennett is lying to parliament. Bennett has never believe a sickness (or ?congenitical? condition) can last more that a year, you’d think she would have a medical professional alongside of her when she gave such statements regarding health care.
Going to the Doctor can be hazardous to ones health! People who are ill go there! Its therefore something that should not be forced into unnecessarily. Forcing citizens to see Doctors, hasn’t happened since, what the last miltrary regime….?? Its just a bad precedent to set.
Every time the government feels under pressure or wants to hide something, Paula wheels out another reform that may or may not happen and it deflects the conversation.
The search function is playing up again (returning small numbers of hits from 1970)
Had that yesterday – it was rather confusing.
Also had the entire site disappear last night. All I got was a blank screen when I tried the address.
“Also had the entire site disappear last night. All I got was a blank screen when I tried the address.”
+1, couldn’t reach the site all evening 🙁
Yeah. It was a problem with some site coming in and battering it.
I’ve been slowly working towards making it more resilient when I have time (still working on releases).
Since it went down last night anyway just before 10pm due to bots (looked like a new spambot network went online this week) and failed to survive the restart twice (and I finally have a Gold release done), I took the opportunity of it being offline to put the next phase in. Finished up uncompleted at about 6am, grabbed a few hours sleep and went to work to finish the Mac version of the client software…
Sometime this weekend or next week, I should have the last server reconfiguration to put into place. Then we will be ready for an election and capable of surviving the occasional bot storms (and do it on several hundred dollars per month).
Many thanks for everything, including my TS addiction!
y’all culda’ been watching Owen get dumped for being an arse on Coro. (oooh, and he wasn’t a happy builder at all).
No tv. Coro is about the only thing I miss. I don’t even know who Owen is, it’s been too long.
(i gob all over tvnz-breakfast-show..and the various entities involved..)
http://whoar.co.nz/2013/ed-wow-excruciating-moments-in-breakfast-television-the-london-connection/
(excerpt..)
“..ed:..we are really spoilt for choice..in bad breakfast television..
..and currently – the simpering of the compere on tv3 when interviewing key caused a serious case of gastric-reflux in me..so i am avoiding their offerings..
..but tvnz never disappoints..”
(cont..)
phillip ure..
@ P Ure:
Morning Report on Natrad is a better option than both, though also pretty lame. The thing is though, that at least (unless you have a TV in the bathroom) you can take a dump/take the kids to the beach whilst listening and feel better about it.
Whereas the TV1 and TV3 equivalent audiences have a problem. (Whilst 3 for a half hour is OKish, there’s still the problems of having to clean up afterwards).
Silence, or noise free/technology free time though is not a bad option. I’m sure you could probably handle the loss of seeing those gorgeous celebs masquerading as journalists for a couple of hours.
Of course, I don’t have these problems. I’m a bit like those John Key, Simon Bridges, Paula Bennett, “The Standard trollers: BM, KK et al’ Natty types. I don’t shit, and I don’t sweat – plus I know what’s best for you.
I’m born to rule dontcha know. I studied Chris Finlayson, and I’m in awe! (AND I smell like a white rose – simply adorable)
@ tim..both of the presenters on morning report annoy me intensely..
..so that isn’t an option..
..and i watch/flick around brekky-telly as part of the news-gathering thing i do each morn…
..i then dive to nat-rad to see what is happening @ nine..
..and then usually retreat into the music-collection..
..(random choice of favourites…6.8 days worth..mmm!!!..warm and tasty..!..)
..phillip ure..
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1311/S00184/lets-be-cleverer-than-sexual-predators.htm
The state continues to have an abysmal track record when it comes to vetting caregivers (mentors will have the same issues)
Idiot/Savant over at NRT gave Chris Trotter a big fat raspberry yesterday over his take on Jerry Mateparae’s speech to the parliamentary press gallery. Well, lo, the Herald editorial writers today has done exactly what Trotter predicted – that is, used Mateparae’s speech as part of it’s pre-emptive campaign to delegitimise a Labour/Green coalition if National is the largest party after the next election.
Make no mistake. If given a chance, the political/business axis of the right will do everything in it’s power – up to and including trying to annull an election result with the flimiest of legal excuses – to prevent a government coming to power that threatens the neo-liberal consensus and capitalist power.
And they’ve been playing war games in the South to remove a government.
Plutocracy, not democracy is now NZ’s governing system.
Remember Whitlam.
Remember Bainimarama
Remember the frequency Kenneth when the River runs dry. What we need is some Capability for the brown-off.
Would Yi-Fu Tuan support Canterbury irrigation?
“The continuous circulation of water in the ocean, the atmosphere , and on the land is fundamental to the availability of water on the planet”.
– The Hydrologic Cycle and the Wisdom of God
“ From this I conclude that Humanistic Geography is neglected because it is too hard. Nevertheless, it should attract the tough-minded and the idealistic…”
@ Ad…..Yi-Fu Tuan …the American geographer?..i would say he would be a Greenie and a good friend of the environmentalists who wish to protect the rivers and aquifers
I remember both Whitlam AND Bainimarama both – in GREAT fucking detail. The former slightly better than the latter – in fact the latter is responsible for my various comments under a p p er sudo err psy, err alias.
I also remember my cousin ( a former spook’s warning)
Cherr bro, snot beart race or creed or changes of gubbamint amongst perceived colonial masters, or Muff McGillicuddy’s wank, wank wankering – who hardly ever heard of the Fiji-ease/EAR NUZULL trevull destnayshun before coming to pear – but are now absolute experts, pulling strings whilst their challengers wear manufektered buzzy suits looking like sommit that came outta a British-designed ark.
For FUCK’s bloody SAKE.
Fiji is probably the BIGGEST reason I (personally) have lost faith in the abilities of ear S oi S, en Goi.Soi.Ess.Boi.
Christ Almightly! No one – other than perhaps the of Michael Field (having to work under a corporate Fearfex) saw it all coming!!!! (He ekshly wrote about it in the early 00’s). And these (MFAT – snr megmint sperts) are the cnuts we’re now expected to entrust our ‘best interests’ and ‘welfare’ and ‘we-know-best’ hope to.
Fuck me with a feather duster.
Pardon me if I don’t have that much confdince.
FFS!
Smart sanctions that never ever were ….. (like political travel sanctions whilst failing to delve deeper – ANZ bank accounts filled with ill-gotten gains, Frankie boy’s history – known to NZDF/OZDF and reported to pollies, training ships where is ‘skills’ were learned;
embouldened (after BOTH Okker and NewZill changes) by a gubba gubbs desperately trying to rub together a couple of ideas to salvage a situation, PRIMARILY of their own fucking making.
Whilst Helen (and of course her advisors and spin doctors) might have been slightly naiive; theres’s a Key and a Muff that have ABSOLUTELY NO fucking ides (other than treats & trinkets-driven tuneties for nego-shay-shun)
” trying to annull an election result with the flimiest of legal excuses”
as far as i know theres no law requiring the biggest party to have first crack at, or demand the right to form a coalition – so that could be quite entertaining
It could be more about “manufacturing consent” regardless of electoral procedures, and GG Mateparae would be well used to both taking orders and doing the ruling class bidding.
Oh im sure thats the game plan – im more thinking that in a court it would get funny watching lawyers arguing something that there is no law for
this great danish tv series shows how mmp is supposed to work, & its very good drama too. many similar parallels to nz govt too. & also the right are wrong, if they think the biggest party ‘deserves’ to form govt, in borgen the biggest party is the opposition!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borgen_%28TV_series%29
Sorry, but that’s pretty much the fevered imagination of a conspiracy theorist at work.
So now Stephen Joyce is opposed to increasing film industry rebates because…
1) they are actually now subsidies
2) the govt doesnt want to support a race to the bottom
yet during the hobbit saga
1) it was a rebate
2) it was needed to keep the industry going and people employed
WTF!?
Time to cut the apron strings?
If so then its time to cut it to the Hobbit films which are still in production?
Not our precious Hobbitses movies? Yess… cuts them too!
The film/TV/commercial/animation industry in workers organisational terms is basically more of a rabble now than ever before with the exception of Northern Actors and some principled individuals. Tech guilds and all the rest mean little in what has been legislated into an official dependent contracting industry.
Some otherwise sensible people I know that support all sorts of Green and left causes have serious problems viewing their own film industry with some perspective, it is every dog for its self. This is the legacy of the Hobbit Enabling Act. And now the government that removed workers rights to organise won’t assist with macro settings that it could try. If anyone in the industry (apart from John Barnett of course) votes National next time they have rocks in their heads.
time to stop being a hypocrite actually.
When you compare the two its quite clear from his responses that the hobbit deal was ONLY about doing something for warners. If it wasnt about that, and at the time joyce really did see it as being about helping the industry then he would have a better line than a flat out reversal this time, on the same issue wouldnt he
Im talking about how his actions and words on these two situations expose his actual motivation – not whether the film industry should get rebates or subsidies or whatever
“Time to cut the apron strings?”
Stephen Joyce wears a pinny?
Zero hedge puts together some good summaries and analyses of the TPPA leak.
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-11-13/leaked-treaty-worse-sopa-and-acta
This absolutely blew me away this morning.
Ex-World Bank employee whistleblower reveals how the global elite rule the world.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/world-bank-whistleblower-reveals-how-the-global-elite-rule-the-world/5353130
” Hudes is trying very hard to expose the corrupt financial system that the global elite are using to control the wealth of the world.”
“A former insider at the World Bank, ex-Senior Counsel Karen Hudes, says the global financial system is dominated by a small group of corrupt, power-hungry figures centered around the privately owned U.S. Federal Reserve. The network has seized control of the media to cover up its crimes, too, she explained. In an interview with The New American, Hudes said that when she tried to blow the whistle on multiple problems at the World Bank, she was fired for her efforts. Now, along with a network of fellow whistleblowers, Hudes is determined to expose and end the corruption. And she is confident of success.
Citing an explosive 2011 Swiss study published in the PLOS ONE journal on the “network of global corporate control,” Hudes pointed out that a small group of entities — mostly financial institutions and especially central banks — exert a massive amount of influence over the international economy from behind the scenes. “What is really going on is that the world’s resources are being dominated by this group,” she explained, adding that the “corrupt power grabbers” have managed to dominate the media as well. “They’re being allowed to do it.”
Relevant to all of our interests, don’t you think?
How long before her mental health is questioned and similar n the media??? And she is scorned because she was sacked for doing a bad job????
Really interesting set of links within that Crunchtime, cheers
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228354.500-revealed–the-capitalist-network-that-runs-the-world.html#.Ud5_NvmL3nj
So, the super-entity may not result from conspiracy. The real question, says the Zurich team, is whether it can exert concerted political power. Perhaps there is too many to sustain collusion. More likely they will compete in the market but act together on common interests. Resisting changes to the network structure may be one such common interest.
Remember the networks of individuals Bruce Jesson put together in “Only Their Purpose is Mad” and works prior to that? Well it’s also true on a global scale. It’s not as intentional as a hive-mind, but it’s still conscious and reflextive like an organism.
Just reminds me to get rid of the mortgage so fast.
Chris Trotter making all sorts of apologies for Tamihere and Jackson
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2013/11/a-disturbing-precedent.html
My opinion of Chris Trotter sinks ever lower.
As if “intent” is ever going to make it ok to question the dress standards and drinking habits of rape victims. Ugh.
I reread the article again. There are so many things wrong with what he has written it is hard to know where to start. I did make a rather restrained comment, will see if he replies.
it appears JT and WJ are victims of the ingrained misogynism of society………….
Damn you, you stole my words.
You would say that would’nt you Weka. To Trotter charge ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”, how do you plead?
Ennui, WJ and JT’s actions were out there in public for all to see. They harassed (2 onto one) and victim blamed a woman telling her story. JT and WJ had the power in that situation. To not act pretty quickly against them would send a message in support of victim blaming, and silencing of victims.
JT especially is a serial offender when it comes to misogyny. How much more are people supposed to put up with?
If it had been Laws I do wonder if they would have stood him down.
However, standing up to their behaviour has sent a strong message. One question is whether the result will be to send the rape culture back under cover as it was before the roastbusters story or if society will front up to change. Sadly, not led by the Government in this regard.
“If it had been Laws I do wonder if they would have stood him down.”
Yes, but that’s about Mediaworks not the left blogosphere. Here is what I commented on Bowalley Rd, the last bit was my response to Trotter’s ideas about racism.
Chris, I take it from your use of quotation marks that you don’t think Tamihere and Jackson were misogynistic in that interview? Fortunately many people disagree with you, and they used their freedom of expression in, well, expressing that. I think the left blogosphere’s responses were perfectly appropriate: they saw behaviour that was unacceptable and they stepped up and did something. Kind of ironic to have you now arguing that was wrong, given the context of the rape club.
Because there can be little doubt that the decision by so many businesses to withdraw their advertising from Radio Live was prompted by the implicit threat of a consumer boycott of their products if they didn’t. Bluntly, the proposition put to Radio Live amounted to: “Take these guys off the air, or, first off, we’ll hurt your advertisers; and then we’ll hurt you.”
Has it occured to you that as part of that decision they looked at what Tamihere and Jackson actually did and decided they didn’t want their businesses associated with that in any way? It was interesting to read the initial responses from companies that pulled their advertising, compared to Countdown, who initially said it was nothing to do with them. When you read the first lot of responses from companies, they read like the people who wrote them were literate about rape culture. These weren’t responses from people merely concerned about profit lines, they were also concerned about ethics.
As for the ‘this is really racism’ angle…
What did Willie and JT see when 3 News broke the Roastbusters story? Two young brown faces. What did they hear? Middle-class Pakeha liberals baying for their blood. To what did their first thoughts turn? Rape Culture or Lynch Law?
That might be worth looking at if it weren’t for the fact that Tamihere and Jackson are both well known for their misogynistic views and attitudes, and their support of rape culture. I’m also less inclined to take notice of your view on this, given your cultural background, than I am to listen to the voices of Mana Wahine, where Maori women have spoken out about their concern over what Tamihere and Jackson did. Did you do any research on what Maori women have said on this in the last week before you wrote your article?
Weka, Karol et al, you have answered my question admirably. QED.
Nothing pleases me less than the prospect of having the bloggers of the “Left” having any influence over long established principles.To quote a well known story, “A little more caution from you; that is no trinket you carry.”
Your principle appears to be that people are entitled to use hate speech. But what I suspect what you really mean is that people are entitled to support misogyny/rape culture but not other kinds of hatred.
If I’ve misunderstood, that’s up to you, because your comments aren’t particularly clear.
Weka, you have definitely misunderstood. Clarity comes from reading, listening, understanding, applying principles, engaging, understanding. And then formulating a response.
Trotters charge was ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”. I think the answer very self evident in the columns here over the last week. Conclusions are made quickly, charges laid, guilt assumed….an example is that you say to me Your principle appears to be that people are entitled to use hate speech. But what I suspect what you really mean is that people are entitled to support misogyny/rape culture but not other kinds of hatred. That is an example of a complete leap of faith, a non informed presumption, and to me quite wrong and slanderous. What right have you to tell me what I am thinking? It backs up Trotters contention on korero.
I have a very real fear that the ‘instincts” shown on this column will not lead to a positive result, so I blew the whistle. Rings of power should not be used, if the Left does not want to go down the same coercive authoritarian path of the Right they should not mirror their “instincts”.
If it is for a good end, and we find that too many NZers are being regressive (whether they are male or female), why not identify them as part of the problem to be fixed, with firmer measures and sanctions if and when needed.
Particularly after the release of the Roy Morgan results, it can be safely concluded that a large segment of NZ men have a serious attitude problem. Let’s simply push through clear, solid measures which show that progressive attitude and languaging is the only correct and acceptable type to have in this country.
CV, you say, Let’s simply push through clear, solid measures which show that progressive attitude and languaging is the only correct and acceptable type to have in this country.. Let me paraphrase it…let us force people to accept our standards and language, as defined by us, other wise they are heretics….
Rings of power?
emf (some iron filings).
ennui
“let us force people to accept our standards and language, as defined by us, other wise they are heretics….”
In your world there would still be slaves and women wouldn’t vote. We can leave things as they are and continue a rape-type culture. Too bad that 1-3 females will be sexually abused we can’t send any message to a large part of society that they are part of the problem. We’ll just wait for them to come to it in their own time… meanwhile, another hour another sexual abused citizen.
Ennui: btw I know it would never work, and would generate a backlash from both men and women across the country.
Ennui, you may very well be right, but I have no idea because instead of clarifying what you actually meant you’ve just given me a little lecture on something.
btw, if you reread what I wrote, I intentionally used the words ‘appear’ and ‘suspect’ which clearly indicate that I am expressing what I heard rather than defining what you think. That left an opening for you to correct or clarify. That you failed to do so is all down to you.
You come into a conversation about rape culture, and cherry pick out one sentence from a much longer piece by Trotter. Then you make vague accusations towards myself and others here, but you don’t actually tell us what YOU think. I know a set up when I see one, so either clarify what the fuck you are on abotu or stop wasting my time.
Weka, when I came into the conversation it was in response to you accusing Trotter making apologies for Tamihere and Jackson.
I read the article, was left unconvinced either way by Trotter, and probably more in line with yourself (which is why you leap of faith on what I was thinking was somewhat illustrative). The only part I agree with Trotter on precisely is his contention on the Lefts instincts. Hence my original question.
And that, is the crux of it. If your mind is subtle enough to understand, on that point bloggers of the Left confirm Trotters contention in bucket loads.
The implication is about means justifying ends: Trotters words condemn/threaten/punish are all coercive and authoritarian. If that is where you think the Left should be, all good. Count me out.
I will waste no more of my time on this, yours appears precious to you.
Still no idea what you are on about Ennui. If you look at every comment you have made in this sub-thread, there are examples of implication without saying what you actually mean.
I’m out of patience with this kind of communicating after vto ran us all round in circles yesterday. I don’t know you well enough to know why you communicate like this, but let me just say, if you do want to have a genuine conversation with me, assume I need things spelled out.
The problem of course, is that this:
” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”
is complete bullshit. Numerous offers were made by people to appear on JT&W’s show. the offers were rejected or ignored. On the second day, after they had given a pro forma and weak apology, they decided the conversation was over and proceeded to hit the dump button on anyone who started to talk about it.
It was at that point the Tiso started emailing advertisers.
And aside from that, there have been dozens of posts all over the place from people talking about rape culture, and what it is. They have been happening for a long time, and you can read the comment threads to see how the conversations go.
And beyond even that, this is simply not a slide into totalitarianism as Trotter makes out. that’s just fucking laughable. especially coming from him. this is a guy who thinks that the Crown should have used even more extra-legal means to secure convictions in the alleged terrorism case a few years back. A civil libertarian, he just plain isn’t. So for him to climb up on his high horse and start issuing grave warnings, well. It all just smacks of being part of his long running and well documented animosity to those younger, and more liberal, than he.
There is also this thing of him sticking up for his friends JT and WJ, the way he is doing that makes me uncomfortable.
weka, I commend you on expressing well, why Trotter has got it so wrong, here and on Bowalley Road. Trotter not listening, though…
… because it’s all about JT & WJ. And when are JT, WJ, and Trotter going to step up for women on low incomes, beneficiaries, low paid, etc, especially Maori and Pasifika women? These women are multiply oppressed by an economic system geared for the privileged, plus (as with women across all demographics) by misogyny, domestic violence, rape culture etc.
But for Trotter, it’s just about working class men.
Thanks karol. I may be banging my head on a brick wall there. Just waiting to see if he can stretch his mind a bit and apply his political analysis to gender. Kind of weird he’s brought ethnicity and completely ignored the reality for Maori women.
Well done one for trying, but nah. He has Decided.
Are you white, were you born before the First World War, do you wear a cheesecutter and braces, do you have a moustache? If you can answer “yes” to all of these, then Chris Trotter will passionately defend you. If not, then you’re a distraction.
“Let him go, or I’ll have you Longshanks”.
1. He’s not the first or the only one to be concern – he has Josie Pagani onside
2. I think Andrew Geddis, for one, would plead ‘not guilty’ – a decent argument for both keeping them on air or not, imo, is here…
http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/of-speech-and-its-consequences
3. Trotter is disingenuous to to claim the campaign to take them off air is unprecedented. Consumer boycotts for political and social purposes have a long history
You would say that would’nt you Weka. To Trotter charge ” Rather than korero, the left-wing social media’s first instinct was to condemn, threaten, punish and shut down”, how do you plead?
Firstly, I think the whole ‘on trial’ thing is both spurious, and, in this context, highly offensive to all the women who have been raped who have been denied justice legally. Think about that for a moment.
Secondly, if it were two white men preaching race hatred on radio and harassing a Maori woman who had phoned in, would the left still be expected to engage meaningfully with the two white men, and allow them to have their say? What about if it were two men who were harassing a disabled person about their disability? Should the left korero with them on an even footing, allow them to defend their actions?
Honestly, on what planet would you want to give more air to misogyny? The only rationale I can see is if you think that Tamihere and Jackson’s actions weren’t that bad.
Trotter is disingenuous when he says that Tamihere and Jackson were silenced by the left blogosphere. They were silenced by their employers for bringing their employers’ business into disrepute. And good on Mediaworks for doing that.
i really only have a few points to raise on the trotter article
1) theres more than one way to say something – if experienced people like JT and WJ cant figure out a way to say what they want that wont land them in hot water then thats not anyones fault but theirs
2) no-ones free speech has been reduced, has there been anyone kicking in their doors and hauling them off to speech court?- No. The people who pay them either directly or indirectly have decided to take quite normal measures to express the fact that they didnt really like it – either personally or because of the general reaction. Its a money thing, not a rights thing
3) free speech isnt a one way street – say whatever you want – but dont then demand no one challenges you or that no ones tries to win others to their side of the argument
4) theres a vast difference between pub talk and paid talk – if people really cant see that then theres really not much hope for this thing we call free speech.
I say all sorts of things that probably wouldnt go down that well in a client meeting – but when im at work im an agent of my employer. If i did say what im thinking sometimes, there would be consequences. But privately – well thats a different story
the difference being that Willie and JT are paid to talk the way they do. As are Paul Henry, the crews on The Rock etc. They aint being paid to read the news on the BBC World Service.
Do as many women get an equivalent platform to express their views?
No, they are only allowed to read the weather….but there’s some RNZ woman who are allowed to contribute. I can’t stand the commercial radio stations these dayz…
It’s commercial radio. You want on you have to get ratings and you have to get advertisers. Starting with an outspoken profile helps. And the current style seems to be to stir the pot with trash talk and anti-PC drivel.
Whereas you post with an attempted air of non-judgment yet judgment oozes from every word. Your and Trotter’s liberal use of “left” this and “left” that is misplaced and unnecessary.
“condemn, threaten, punish and shut down” could also be examine, question, challenge and seek change through action.
It’s not about JT and WJ and their rehabilitation or realisation it’s about sending message to women and men alike that behaviours need to change and now.
I agree that someone like Paul Henry was far from suspended but supported and praised across the nation. Michael Laws?
I also agree that there may be some racism in this decision, both from the station and the advertisers. easier to let them go because the board and advertisers dont support their politics anyway… whereas to lose a Henry or Laws was to lose free advertising/mouthpiece for their ideological preferences?
Freedom of speech, like any freedom, ought to be exercised prudently, especially by those with power (like radio hosts). It is not a license to inflict harm out of ignorance or ingrained social/cultural ignorance. This is not the first time JT has been misogynistic or homophobic.
he got to speak far more freely on this topic than most victims ever will, and it had consequences. IF he had been a devil’s advocate it might have been different, but they weren’t, they were allowing perpetrators and enablers and the woefully ignorant to nod in agreement and further ingrain their appalling attitudes toward women and abuse.
Almost unnoticed, a duck has gone
RIP another species. When will we realise we are they, and without them we are nothing, probably as extinct?
Some of us do but for those who chase money as the measure of success the disconnect is too big…
DOC cuts, thanks NACT.
And the prospects for a whole lot of other birds has deteriorated.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/environment/news/article.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=11157277
Appalled that the Kea has gone onto the endangered list!
Me too. The kea is/was unique in its intelligence character and charm.
Keas have been seen pecking at downed high country sheep so:
“They keas must have killed the sheep. We farmers must kill the keas. Bang!”
They do harass sheep, and will peck live sheep to get at the fat deposits on the lower back.
So it is understandable that farmers hate them.
Maybe DOC can get one of the corporate farmers to fund the revival of the Kea. Seems to be all the rage these days – corporate sponsors.
I’m sure they’d love to help… no?
Pity the Herald didn’t go into the reasons for continuing native species extinctions.
(this one also applies here..especially to the apostates in this govt..)
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/comedy/news/russell-brand-calls-david-cameron-a-filthy-dirty-posh-wer-8939040.html
“..Russell Brand has called David Cameron and George Osborne “filthy – dirty – posh wankers” –
– on fellow comedian Alan Carr’s talk show.
Following on from the Newsnight interview in which he encouraged viewers to spark a political “revolution” and not vote –
– the 38-year-old star has now criticised the government for being “mean and tight”.
“If you’re always cutting benefits and being horrible –
– it’s because you don’t know how to fuck properly” he told Carr on Chatty Man – which airs this Friday.
“I think if your job is to look after the country – and you don’t care about the people who need it most –
– you’re out of order –
– and you’re a filthy – dirt – posh wanker” he argued.
Days after the prime minister gave a speech in favour of austerity –
– surrounded by gold-embellished furniture –
– Brand insists that his privileged background means Cameron is unable to relate to the society he governs.
“It’s alright if you go to Eton – and then you’re in the House of Parliament.
It’s alright for them to say ‘oh don’t worry about gay rights – don’t worry about poor people’ –
– because it’s not part of their lives –
– but it’s part of our lives” said the actor and comedian..”
phillip ure..
I wonder why the latest Roy Morgan poll is not trumpeted on high here like the last few Roy Morgan polls. Perhaps because it shows that National have again risen and now rank more then Labour+ Greens. The Roy Morgan poll is the one most beloved by the Left. Sadly The Cunliffe’s honeymoon is already over.
It was discussed last night on open mike.
“Perhaps because it shows that National have again risen and now rank more then Labour+ Greens.”
Actually when you crunch the numbers in how a govt could acutally be formed under MMP, they come out at left 61, right 61.
And as I’m sure you well know, it’s the poll trends that count, not a single poll.
Lolz, i am sure Fisani and the rest of the Tory cheerleaders are overjoyed with the result of the latest Roy Morgan,
After weeks of dissing Winston Peters, NZFirst and talking up Colin Craig’s Conservatives and burning up the goodwill and favors from editors and news programers across the media spectrum Slippery the Prime Minister has to sit there and watch as National rips all the support from Craig’s pot-pourri of assorted fruits and nuts,
Craig contrary to His assertion appears to be only capable of soaking up the remnants of the ACT Party and has failed abysmally to make a dent in the support of NZFirst who in the past few months have taken a definite step to the left into State provision and ownership of a number of areas that have been taboo during the Neo-Liberal reign,
This only leaves one question, can the opposition parties form a stable Government together, my opinion is Yes, on the major issues surrounding economy and the direction and actions of the Government within that economy there is among the three, Labour,Green,NZFirst more agreement than there is disagreement…
Pretty much, b12.
Basically, lab have gotten over the leadership change bump and will now probably get get back to solid incremental improvement in the next couple of cycles. The representation issue will fizzle away (except on the sewer), and the government will still be demonstrating incompetence (or, in a new twist, actively claiming incometence like Colman did).
It is clearly out of line with all other polls and the indisputable trend that National is on its way out.
One good poll does not make a winning elction Fis.
Don’t sweat the small stuff. Just shows Labour cannabilising the Green vote and National maintaining its overall position.
A simple linear forecast shows the “left” and “right” blocks holding their respective positions.
Cunliffle doesn’t walk on water and, indeed, the party faithful are drinking urine not wine.
Aaaaah Derrrr, did you actually read the poll, it shows this time round Labour is down a bit and the Green Party is up…
TVNZ defends executive after crack at Auckland hit a nerve.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11157404
This bit got a laugh from the audience – talking about Wellington and Christchurch:
Racist?
Anne
I would say it was an ironic comment on the regular meme and theme that is heard about Auckland. Don’t let’s start over-sensitising to ordinary words – it leads to anaphylactic outcomes disastrous to discussion. I admit I get fired up about mother-fuc.er, two fairly ordinary words, but I find the combination unacceptable.
Not too sure the Polynesian communities will see it that way.
Racist? In that Pakeha ignorant of what racism really is kind of way, yes. As someone says in the article, coming from someone with no ties to the Polynesian community it’s still about perceptions of Polynesians as ‘other’. I thought the Herald did relatively well in finding a good person to comment.
Grey, it’s not about the word. It’s about who used it and the context it was used in.
What’s the Auckland meme? Too many Polynesians?
weka
Don’t be always looking for something to grizzle about. Why is there on every site one, apparently female, waiting to jump up, censor things and take others to task?
Perhaps you might have noticed how often there is a one-person ambush waiting to tell everyone what to do, how its done correctly, and passing critical comments of others opinions. I do some of it myself but try to limit it. It is one of those aids in life that, overdone, becomes stifling.
If it was South Africans mentioned, thinking that there are a lot on the North Shore, or whatever, it would be acknowledging a fact.
nup, racist. why make the joke at all? its an assumption that everyone thinks like him.
Perhaps it was a positive observation about Polynesian rugby talent?
Grey, are you wanting me to shut up?
This is a political blog, racism is political. Why would it not be ok to express an opinion about it, esp in response to a question someone raised?
“apparent female”…
is an apparent female a man?
Should have stuck to earlier promise to self, tends to get rather clumsy when discussing this sacred woman thing and embroidery…
Good news for young women in 16 and 17 year group. I think it may be only those with babies. Those who have had to live separately from their family will now get the security and support that a good family should provide.
They are to have shared housing provided with up to three of them living together. Older people, or slightly older young ones will be nearby and mentor them and their money will be channelled into providing the necessities first and then presumably an amount for discretionary spending. They are going to be supported, helped and be in training that will prepare them for their future employment and managing their own lives. If done sympathetically and a friendly organised way it will be great.
This should be done widely, meeting whatever need there is, not just a pilot scheme to wave in front of the voters in election year as an example of the wonderful capacity building that this government is doing. But don’t know what will happen when the women turn 18, hope it won’t be ‘throw them in the pool to see if they can swim’ time. And what about working with boys, the young men who apparently do not mature until they are 25, and what a tortuous path they may follow in their younger years?
One swallow does not win an election. But some would swallow it. Let’s have more and show up Labour, try and fight them and the Greens, with the observable facts and evidence on the ground of NACTs good ‘social development’.
The irony there is that if this were being offered under a L/G govt, it might actually work. Under a NACT govt, it’s likely to be hit and miss at best, and that will largely depend on the people in the agencies involved. Some will do good, some will do bad.
I saw something yesterday that said that 16 and 17 yr olds are no longer allowed welfare payments directly. The payments instead go through an agency. Wouldn’t it be better to have a system whereby if the young person can demonstrate they are capable of managing their finances they are allowed to do so? Isn’t it both patronising and disabling to treat all young people as the same?
“and then presumably an amount for discretionary spending.”
What are you basing that one?
“I think it may be only those with babies.”
I didn’t pick that up, I thought it was all 16/17 yr olds who had had to leave home.
Yes weka, I am not sure about the exact details. But because of the vulnerability of that age and the fact they have already got to the baby stage, it doesn’t hurt to treat them all with over care and some rules. And doing their own household budgeting and so on, they would get advice on good diets and what different foods are good for for health and gardening of simple vegetables etc.
The group should be led to the self-managing state. Planning their budgets which they check out together to see how well they are managing etc. And they definitely should not have all their money taken by the agency. But it’s not meant to be just a short-term course where these young ones are left on their own after just learning stuff. Capacity building I said and that’s what I understood is the intention.
You have a lot more faith in the system than I do, and 100% more faith in the intentions of NACT. Mostly I see them as being controlling and manipulative. If the scheme were done with aroha I would agree with some of what you say. But I’ve never seen aroha coming from the Minister, and I know from experience that the state is mostly operating under a punitive welfare regime during NACT govts. I guess the damage they do with this one will just be added to the pile.
Mr Deeds Goes to Town 😉
My mother-in-law had her first child at 17. Apparently not a completely unheard of occurrence in those days – 70 years approx.
Perhaps instead of talking (endlessly) about the vulnerability and lack of discipline of contemporary women in the same situation, we look for the capability and success of those that manage – and manage well.
They will have more insight into how to achieve success than someone with a completely different idea of “the right time to have a baby” and “poor offspring”. I am sometimes appalled by the lack of insight of those who are trained to help, and like weka think that usually the “help” that is offered by programmes like these from the National party are often applied in conjunction with a big stick.
If this was voluntary, done properly, with good support and access to ongoing education / training you might have a starter.
But given that this is the party that has consistantly cut access to education and training it doesnt seem likely.
Looks more like a way to hand off money to unaccountable private sector organisations.
Also, as can be seen in the legislation they have passed over the last 5 years, they don’t appear to understand the concepts of good governance, accountability or any sort of fiscal competance.
Expect opportunities for rorts, abuse of the system, and potentially abuse of the young women.
“Currently, there are around eight potential sites around the country including in Christchurch, Tokoroa, Whakatane, Auckland, Hamilton and Invercargill.”
At least it’ll only be a pilot. If Labour / Greens get in next year, it might provide a starting point for a decent program.
I believe that there’s a difference between providing support and ensuring that they get it and standing over their shoulder. This new policy from National is obviously the latter.
Any significance in this?
“Meridian Energy’s sliding share price must be making some investors and the Government feel a little nervous.
Shares in the power company hit $1.11 on November 6 but have trended downwards since then.
On Wednesday they touched a low point of $1.01 – just 1c above the first instalment issue price.
There may be a touch of groundhog day feeling coming through.” -Tamsyn Parker
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11157369
So a clear loss once brokerage fees etc are taken into account.
nz has no legal answer to ponzi schemes. we open ourselves up to the diseases of the world of all types yet don’t take sensible precautionary protective measures or have remedial procedures.
(I suggest while you read listen to youtube of Taco singing Putting on the Ritz, very appropriate.)
And clever experienced keys has been in politics for almost a decade, and came with full knowledge of the dangers to a country and its investors of shonkey schemes. He knew. and he didn’t pass on his knowledge for the benefit of the country. Birds of a feather fly together, the old saying. So he has a bunch that like his style, his money, his panache, his casual cheeriness, his concise answers to difficult or ethical problems with a falling emphasis in his voice.)
Now follow up Taco with Robin Williams on being an alcoholic.
Menu”
“All the hunger, all the yearning
With the life-line that you’re burning
Poison lessons that you’re learning
The Road ahead is turning”.
The Living End Wake Up
UNICEF [spokesman ] “By 2020, (not far away now) we will be responding increasingly to the frequency of [ climate disaster ] events.
Alan Johnson, Salvation Army Housing Research- “what we are seeing is publicly funded gentrification” (GI, Pomare)
Bacon on Freud
New Bacon for an egg?
Another acquisition by some super-rich prick who probably doesn’t really like the work all that much, just wants to impress visitors to the mansion.
Can only hope it gets donated to a public collection when the golden one passes on..
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/9404405/State-asset-sales-costly
Your MOM’s expensive.
9m is just morning-after sickness.
Die on the job? You can’t picket parliament, corporate headquarters, for a fair redundancy. So Mr Key its not the same.
Are we really that backwards that secured investors get paid out before the bereaved (who get nothing)? That a government that removed protection is not liable for the results?
Apparently.
Where’s that corporate shill photonz advocating for this. Probably studying up his next load of CT lies.
That owners of undeveloped land get 50% in ChCh from the govt! Yet miners get nowt?
Okay, get the argument that the miners were not unionized, and were paid more so they could take out life insurance etc. But there was one kid who died, on his first day down the mine, who would likely have not gotten any insurance as he might not have taken to the job.
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2013/11/ppta_introduces_apartheid-era_type_bans.html
– Good article from kiwiblog, not quite sure its comparable to apartheid but its poor form from the ppta (not surprising of course)
this appears unattractive.
Schoolkids as pawns always are but from the ppta point of view they’re just protecting their patch I guess
happens across many of the professions I have observed; that’s competition.
well, if the CEO of a charter school says they are bullies they must be…
Notice the charter school has a Chief Executive Officer, state schools have Principals.
Teachers usually want the best for their students, even when misguided their intention is pupil centred. NOT all of course.
quite a bit of research revealing the effect teacher expectations have on the outcomes achieved. Not always egalitarian.
can you explain how the PPTA is making teachers not mix with charter school teachers? Please include evidence.
Why can’t boring parrot Chris come up with some original drivel instead this rote-learned crap? No wonder research shows that right wingers have lower IQs when this is the best they can manage: make up a lie, then repeat it to one another like a cultist mantra.
Why don’t they just become Scientologists? At least they’d have more exciting drivel.
It wasn’t the teachers plotting against the children, Thetan Chris, it was Xenu.
I love you to bro 😉
The misinformation given is that somehow the PPTA instructs its members to do this or that. The PPTA is run by teachers for teachers. A decision to boycott will be a local majority decision not an instruction from on high.
Is a boycott a good idea? It might just mean that if you want to go it alone, then do so without our help or support. That would be unsurprising wouldn’t it?
The CEO is having a moan about not being able to send the pupils to the local school for some specialist subjects.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503450&objectid=11156955
If the boys and their whanau choose to enroll in the kura hourua, the kura has plans for some senior students to take certain classes, such as economics or trade studies at external schools such as Whangarei Boys’ High School and NorthTec.
A cut and paste of some quotes with a slanted opinion superimposed. Nobel prize anyone?
It’s Kiwiblog thus it’s probably spinning. As the saying goes:
Best way to sell a lie is to mix in a bit of truth
Society values money more than sexual assault victims??
“The man behind what is thought to be New Zealand’s largest Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to 10 years and 10 months in prison.”
“Daniel Taylor, 34, a former foster parent for Child Youth and Family, was sentenced to five years and seven months behind bars when he appeared for sentencing in the High Court at Whangarei this morning.
Justice Peter Woodhouse ordered that Taylor serve at least two years and 10 months before he was eligible for parole and expressed doubt at the convicted paedophile’s remorse after it emerged he had penned a single line apology letter to his victims – signed “regards, Daniel Taylor”.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11157408
– This is a good move
Yep, it’s a great focus. Better than focusing on, say, funding rape prevention programmes in all high schools. Better to spend time and money chasing the fines…
So every positive action by the govt will be prefaced by ” Better than focusing on, say, funding rape prevention programmes in all high schools”?
Nope, just this one and any time the right and its supporters focus on imagined heinous crime that must be stopped while ignoring real heinous crime.
Oh well when you put it like that…(yeah thats sarcasm)
If I had not retired the machines I’d be eternally outlawed. ” The Road goes on, and on and on…”
whereas cycling, that’s real freedom.
“You’ve got about four months from the time you’ve been stopped and given a ticket to pay. That’s not bad, and that’s interest-free credit.” says Chester beater Borrows
Don’t know how he can call it “interest-free credit” when the government don’t borrow money to cover it….do they?
Futures Trades Pledged (hedged).
One new sling the same old rock
/facepalm
Last time I got stopped for speeding I got a fine that I had to pay, not an interest free loan that I could spend anyway I liked.
And, yes, I do think it’s a good move. Loss of license, loss of car (while keeping the debt of course) should make people think. I would be interested in the demographics of it as well.
Is the car impounded or confiscated permanently?
Just impounded unfortunately, I would sell it to cover costs and let them keep the debt that’s attached to the car.
Is it just speeding fines, or are they applying it to other fines (wof etc)? Am thinking of the whole boy racer thing from a few years back.
In light of this do the political right still view speed cameras as revenue gathering devices?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10830429
http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/tag/revenue-gathering/#axzz2kgH3Uil0
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2010/06/naked_revenue_gathering-2.html
Or have they moved on and realised that breaking the law is actually a crime?
it’s only a crime if you can’t afford to pay the fine – the tory dream
“A report by the army’s social policy analyst Alan Johnson shows rents for the cheapest quarter of rented homes in the former Auckland City have risen faster than average since 2008 – by 21.6 per cent for three bedrooms and 25 per cent for two bedrooms in the lower quartile, in a period when median rents across Auckland rose by 17 per cent and consumer prices by only 12.5 per cent.
But benefits have been adjusted only in line with consumer prices, and the maximum rates of accommodation supplement have not changed since 2005.
The result is that five out of six low-income groups examined in the report are now worse off in real terms than they were five years ago by amounts ranging from $1.33 a week for a single sickness beneficiary renting a one-bedroom flat to $33.64 a week for an unemployed couple with three children renting a three-bedroom house, both at lower-quartile rents.”
That’s the SALVATION army, just before the chemtrailers start another theory 🙂
http://www.ijreview.com/2013/11/93968-thanks-obamacare-tapping-beer-fund/
– Got to pitch the ads at the level of the people you’re trying to sell to I guess
Yup, they should have gone with single payer.
That’s what happens when corporate money infects a democracy.
Opps….
The site was getting pretty damn slow because I managed to comment out the provision of swap space in fstab when I was fiddling last night. It was getting pretty memory constrained..
Just turned the swap on and cleared the outstanding backlog.
Should be faster now.
Well, hopefully now I won’t be getting blank screens.
hey lprent were you involved in setting up CyberPlace ?? They have a similar logo …
Nope. If it involves aesthetics then I am not responsible for it
How’s the War on Drugs going these days?
http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2013/11/us-drug-afgahnistan-opium.html
Patroling and protecting Afghan poppy fields seems to be the latest approach.
Happy opium farmers are Afghans who are less likely to shelter and help anti-US insurgents.
‘
Proxy surfing to be made illegal. Sad to say, there consensus between National Ltd™ and Labour on this aspect of the TPP.
Would you care to explain how?
‘
For the service provider to comply with the proposed rules it must know how each and every user of its system accessed the allegedly copyright material. One way to ensure this capability is to prevent the use of proxy surfing. I don’t know how they would do it, though.
I was looking for the santa fe institute and got santa fe news, usa instead.
This was one of their articles. Sounds pretty jaw dropping. Like something from bootleg liquor days.
Boston crime boss Whitey Bulger sentenced to life
BOSTON — Former Boston crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger was sentenced Thursday to life in prison for his murderous reign in the 1970s and ’80s, bringing to a close a case that exposed FBI corruption so deep that many people across the city thought he would never be brought to justice.
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/
Typhoon Haiyan May Devastate Philippine Economy
http://www.ksdk.com/story/weather/2013/11/11/typhoon-haiyan-hurting-philippines-economy/3497053/
– “This is only the beginning…”
http://www.ibtimes.com/philippines-super-typhoon-only-beginning-far-worse-natural-catastrophes-1468806?
and maybe throw in a Cholera pandemic …
Has something changed between 2011 and today? Cos I haven’t heard a peep about asset sales from Colon Cray. Ready to sell his principles for a ministerial seat? How very un-Christian.
http://tvnz.co.nz/election-2011/conservative-party-asset-sales-lose-money-4560364
National isn’t the only party dining on dead rats in this marriage.
The Japan Times Online: “Risky Fuel Removal about to Start”:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/11/14/national/risky-fuel-removal-about-to-start/#.UoXecXCMlTI
As someone actually living in Tokyo, I sometimes find myself offside with people more alarmed about the Fukushima situation. I thought this was a timely update about what is currently going on, since Bill posted about this a couple of weeks ago (as I understand it the commencement of the fuel removal operation was delayed for more testing to occur).
Anyway, the Japan Times is a pretty good source of thoroughly-researched news and is frequently critical of the Japanese government and TEPCO on a number of issues, so hopefully the article is informative. Also, the diagram is kinda neat.
Something different from Chile: ‘Los Prisoneros’ at Vina del Mar in 2003, perhaps some may be interested in this:
‘Soda Stereo’ de Argentina, one of the best groups ever from Latin America, worth watching and listening to:
That is stuff few here know, and it is a great performance at Vina Del Mar, Chile, that they did in 1987.
Never ending to repeat myself, some of the best of Latin American music comes from the group Illapu:
http://www.illapu.cl/
Their song Vuelvo is popular:
Being a HUMAN BEING, best spoken out by Victor Jara, one of the most hounoured souls that there ever was on this planet: